When Will My Aid Disburse?

The following chart displays when the various aid types will begin disbursing for the Fall 2017 semester. The dates indicated assume the student's financial aid package was finalized and all requirements complete prior to add/drop.

Aid Awarded or Accepted after the 1st Week of School

Students that did not have an award package offered to them by the end of add/drop may have their disbursements delayed beyond the dates indicated below. Students that accept loans after/add drop will not have their loans disburse for a minimum of 7-10 days after the loan is accepted.

Fall 2017 Anticipated Disbursement Dates by Aid Type

Anticipated Date

Type of Aid

Prevent Delays

BeginningSep. 7, 2017

PLUS (Parent and Grad) Loans1

Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans (Graduate Students)1

Private Alternative Loans

Note: Subsequent disbursements for all loan types will be made on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

1 The Department of Education will send a Disclosure Statement to the borrower's email address and it will contain an approximate disbursement date.

All financial aid disbursements and payments received by the collage are first used to pay for tuition, fees, room, board and any other charges on the student's bill. Only after the bill is paid in full, will a student will receive a refund. Since not all financial aid is disbursed at the same time and students have different charges, students will receive refunds at different points throughout the semester. The following two examples illustrate this point.

Note: Students will not physically receive their refunds the same day aid disburses. Once a refund is due to a student, it takes 2-3 business days for the funds to be electronically deposited into their account if they have signed up for direct deposit or 7-10 business days for a paper check to arrive at their permanent address.

Example #1: Student that lives on-campus

Michelle completed all aid/loan requirements in advance of the fall semester. She is a freshman that lives on-campus. Including her book deferment, her charges for the fall semester are $9,422. To determine when Michelle will receive her refund, she needs to subtract each financial aid award from her total charges of $9,422 in the order in which they will be received by the college. Below shows how her charges decrease with each payment of her financial aid.

For example, her total charges started at $9,422 but after her TAP award is applied she owes: $9,422 - $2,500 = $6,922. Once her subsidized loan is applied to her charges, her remaining balance is $6,922 - $1,723 = $5,199 and so on. Once her SUNY Tuition Credit disburses, her bill becomes paid in full and she is due a refund of $209 because her account is negative. Michelle can expect to receive her refund in late October/early November.

Aid

Disbursement Date

Amount

Remaining Amount
Owed to College

Semester Charges/Total Owed

----

---

$9,422

- TAP Grant

Considered paid

$2,500

$6,922

- Federal Subsidized Loan

early to mid-September

$1,723

$5,199

- Federal Unsubsidized Loan

early to mid-September

$990

$4,209

- Federal Pell Grant

beginning of October

$2,823

$1,386

- SEOG

beginning of October

$100

$1,286

- Perkins Loan

beginning of October

$1,000

$286

- SUNY Tuition Credit

end of October

$495

-$209

REFUND ISSUED

end of October

$209

$0

Example #2: Student lives off-campus

Tom is a full-time student for the fall semester and is living off-campus. In total, Tom's bill is $3,511. To determine when he will receive his refund, he subtracts each financial aid award from his total charges of $3,511in the order in which they will be received by the college. Below shows how his charges decrease with each payment of his financial aid. Tom can expect to receive two (2) refunds. He will receive the bulk of his refund in mid-September when his loans disburse and then, after the SUNY Tuition Credit disburses, that will be refunded entirely to him.

Aid

Disbursement Date

Amount

Remaining Amount
Owed to College

Semester Charges/Total Owed

----

---

$3,511

- TAP Grant

Considered paid

$250

$3,261

- Federal Subsidized Loan

early to mid-September

$2,708

$553

- Federal Unsubsidized Loan

early to mid-September

$990

-$437

REFUND #1 ISSUED

mid-September

$437

$0

- SUNY Tuition Credit

end of October

$40

-$40

REFUND #2 ISSUED

end of Oct./early Nov.

$40

$0

Direct Deposit vs. Paper Refund Check

Direct Deposit forms are available at either the Financial Aid Office or Student Accounts Office or online. Completed forms should be returned toStudent Accounts. The direct deposit request need not be renewed as it stays in force until rescinded or changed by the student. Students that use direct deposit can expect to receive their refund within 2-3 business days after the aid disbursed.

Paper Refund Checks are mailed to students' permanent address if direct deposit is not set up. Paper refund checks take about 7-10 business days to arrive in the student's mailbox. Students are encouraged to sign up for direct deposit to expedite this process.